Two Worthy Questions for Earth Day

 

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“…if every aspect of the non-military sector instantly stopped generating greenhouse gases, the military’s carbon footprint alone will propel the world toward catastrophe.” — Barry Sanders

When Jimmy Carter occupied the White House, sun panels were installed. They were promptly removed when Ronald Reagan took over the executive office. That was slightly over a decade had passed since the first Earth Day. And since then our collective crises have worsened immeasurably, positive advances in technology notwithstanding.

I have lots against Bill McKibben, but at least — most recently — he’s projecting something other than an apocalyptic scenario as possible. His statement that

“you could make an argument that in the Trump era capitals like Sacramento are just as important”

resonated with me deeply. Colleagues of mine have been advocating that concerned citizens in California focus their (human) energy on taking over the Sacred Seat of Sacramento — the governor’s office — for the better part of the last fourteen years. I urge everyone to check out the specific plan for action that one colleague of mine delineated in a 2016 interview; a condensed treatment of the “game plan” can be found near the end of the exchange. It’s one way to make a huge difference without having to deal with the doors which are closed to us all on the federal level.

One thing, though, I’d like to add that folks don’t seem to know… as they attempt to address environmental issues. That is, the social destruction in Central America and elsewhere which both Carter and Reagan must be blamed for — their absolutely stupefying atrocities — can be positively correlated with the desecration of Mother Earth in every realm. In fact, one cannot be successful environmentally if one is mentally off respecting human rights… like so many U.S. presidents have been.

One cannot separate how we treat human beings from our interaction with the environment. And so… I have a couple of questions for everyone:

If you’re fighting to save the environment, are you also fighting our killing overseas?

Or are you one of those concerned citizens who has bought into the notion that the U.S. — its military, arguably, one of the greatest single polluters on earth, and a much greater “terrorist” than the followers of ISIS by any standards — has to create abominations abroad for our safety?

Valleria Ruselli is a member of the Oxman Collective, and she can be reached at [email protected].

 

 

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